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I am upgrading my HP ProLiant ML330 G6 (Single Processor) server to 48GB registered RAM.
Basically, I have done a bit of research and had come to a conclusion that 6 x Single Rank 8GB ECC RDIMMs were ideal for my upgrade.
However, after using the ProLiant Memory Configuration tool from HP, I am now a bit confused. The tool recommends using 3 x 16GB Quad ranks for performance as the first option, followed by 6 x 8GB Dual ranks as a second option.
From what I understand (please correct me if I'm wrong) that higher ranks pack denser memory per DIMM and from what I have read this is to enable the user to upgrade further in future without spending too much but at the cost of some bandwidth, which is why I decided to go the single rank. So using 6 x 8GB Single Rank DIMMs is meant to be faster than using 3 x 16GB Dual Rank DIMMs..
So my question to anyone with experience, should I go with the 6 x Single Rank 8GB or 3 x Dual Rank 16GB RDIMMs for best performance/bandwidth (without the need to upgrade anymore in RAM in future)?
Supported Memory Speed in this model Server also depends on which CPU is installed. How many years are you planning on using this server? FYI The newer servers are notably more power efficient. – StackAbstraction – 2015-09-10T05:57:55.893
@StackAbstraction the server has an Intel® Xeon® E5500 series Quad Core single CPU, 9 DIMM slots total. I had purchased it from a third party source who initially had 16GB UDIMM (unbufferred) RAM, which IMO wasn't equally distributed along all channels and it felt very slow. And I am not planning on running the server for too many more years, I just need the best performance possible, without the need to increase more RAM in future. – Master Mick – 2015-09-10T23:14:24.793
Which particular model E5500 series CPU and what speed ram are you aiming to use? – StackAbstraction – 2015-09-10T23:41:10.477
1CPU is Intel® Xeon® Processor E5506 2.13 GHz, 4MB L3 Cache, 80W, DDR3-800. The RDIMMs I am looking to get are rated at 1600Mhz 1.5v (Kingston model.
KTH-PL316S/8G
), but obviously they wont be running at that speed @ 2 per channel. – Master Mick – 2015-09-11T00:06:53.4831Ouch that CPU is stuck at 800 Mhz not the 1066/1333 MHz the system supports. Depending on your workload a CPU upgrade may be a nice boost as well. – StackAbstraction – 2015-09-11T00:12:43.237